Mark is back for his eighth LAT of the year and second this month. I have not had him on a Friday since August 2015. This time we have four starter words in phrases all containing the sound o͞ot derived from the letters "UTE" and Mark then removes the "T" and uses the resulting o͞o sound to select words which will combine with the rest of the phrase to make a new phrase clued wackily. Easier to see than explain. Two are the first word, two are the last word, the only outlier is MAGIC LUTE which maintains the spelling "ute"unlike the other three. We also have no hint or reveal, so you have to 'hear' the gimmick to find the theme. We do have some fresh fill like BLOW BY, SAY BOO (BUTE?), RED CAP, DEUCES, DAYTONA, WHITNEY, ORCHARD and TIDIEST. On with the show...
20A. Number on some beer bottles? : BREW STRENGTH (12). Brute strength. Craft beer tends to be very strong.
35A. Washateria wear? : LAUNDRY SHOE (11). Laundry chute. We have garbage chutes here.
42A. Musical work played where Brits go? : LOO CONCERTO (11). Lute concerto.
59A. Smokeless chimney duct? : THE MAGIC FLUE (12). The magic flute.
Across:
1. Shot in the dark : STAB. My favorite Shot In The Dark
5. Mild expletive : DANG.
9. Contraction used with "up" : WHAT'S. Doc.
14. Confining room : CELL.
15. River originating in Manchuria : AMUR. I wonder how many remember this river from the Wednesday the 7th puzzle.
16. Assails : HAS AT.
17. Woodstock performer before Joan : ARLO. I will not repeat my comments about this performance. Joan Baez was awesome.
18. Sci-fi guru : YODA. And 47A. Sci-fi craft : POD.
19. Rodeo maker : ISUZU. I still miss Joe.
23. Make even the slightest comment : SAY BOO. I do not want to hear a word, not even Boo!
24. Hall of Famer Musial : STAN. Stan the man; I was lucky enough to have watched him and Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle and so many more.
25. Some suits, briefly : VPS.
28. Egg foo __ : YUNG. Some HISTORY.
30. Depot worker : REDCAP. Train depot; bus depot?
32. Flight regulatory org. : FAA.
38. "__ turca: allegretto": Mozart rondo : ALLA. A second helping of Mozart.
41. Floor option : TILE.
48. Exotic journey : SAFARI. Zambia.
51. Terrestrial wiggler : EFT. The clue is open, but it is the juvenile stage of a newt.
52. Storm sound : CLAP. Of thunder.
55. Jefferson bills, slangily : DEUCES. LINK.
64. Bend for a swan, maybe : PLIE.
65. Woodworking tool : FILE. Last week I had rasp.
66. Contemporary of Beethoven : WEBER. This MAN.
67. Trouser parts : LEGS.
68. Chatted with online : IM-ED.
69. Quirky : WEIRD.
70. 2015 World Series-winning manager Ned : YOST. No relation to 1960's Tiger third baseman Eddie Yost.
71. Much of the MTV generation : XERS.
Down:
2. __ firma : TERRA. The dry land on Earth. Latin.
3. Way in the back, often : ALLEY.
4. Pass easily : BLOW BY. Appropriate next to...
5. Prestigious NASCAR venue : DAYTONA.
6. Lima love : AMOR.
7. Many Renoirs : NUDES.
8. Foster __: sunglasses brand : GRANT.
9. Self-titled 1987 pop album : WHITNEY.
10. Diner concoction : HASH.
11. Phil Mickelson's alma mater: Abbr. : ASU. Arizona State University. Phil won a PGA tournament while still a student. The STORY. 25 years ago.
12. Toon devil : TAZ.
13. "The Simpsons" disco guy : STU.
21. Subject of an evil negotiation : SOUL.
22. "Dumb and Dumber" actress : GARR. No recollection of her in that movie.
25. Parental control device : V-CHIP.
26. Italian soccer great Rossi : PAOLO. This football STAR.
27. Dash datum : SPEED.
29. Tortilla chip topper, informally : GUACamole.
31. It's not observed in P.R. : DST. Daylight Savings Time.
32. Pseudo : FALSE.
33. "Half __ is ... " : A LOAF. Is better than a single croissant. Not to be confused with....
34. On high : ALOFT.
36. San Antonio-to-Dallas dir. : NNE.
37. Small craft : DORY. All you need to KNOW.
39. Picasso's here : ACA.
43. Picking site : ORCHARD.Not your nose.
44. Giza's river : NILE.
45. Like the maximum sum : TIDIEST. Odd clue/fill but we all have heard of having a tidy sum.
46. Multinational energy gp. : OPEC. Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
50. Less, when added? : SUFFIX. My favorite clue.
53. To an adequate degree : AMPLY.
54. __ diet : PALEO. A diet based on the types of foods presumed to have been eaten by early humans, consisting chiefly of meat, fish, vegetables, and fruit, and excluding dairy or grain products and processed food. wiki.
56. Versifier's weather : CLIME. This is used to rhyme with time and sublime in the psalms.
57. Calculus pioneer : EULER. Do you math wizzes find Euler fun? Here is a LINK that I found amusing.
58. Origins : SEEDS. Nice clue/fill.
59. Echelon : TIER.
60. Touring jobs : GIGS.
61. "What a darling baby!" : AWW. My girls, Harper will be one year old in 12 days...amazing.
63. Cred for bringing someone home : RBI. Cred tells you this is going to be an abbreviation.
Mark is one of the constructors who does stop by so let him know what you think. He made my mind jump all over the place and slid in a few really hard combinations, but in the end it felt smooth, now if I could only think of a phrase that works with CUTE/COO. Loved the Mozart. Thanks all, Lemonade out.
Note from C.C.:
Happy
Birthday to our witty D-Otto (Tom)! Like Argyle, Tom never failed to give me quick and reliable feedback on an iffy crossword entry or clear up a confusing Podcast reference. I can't imagine where this blog would be without his and TTP's guidance a few years ago. Thanks for always being here, Tom!
FIWrong. Naticks at ALL* + *CA and *OST + AMPLe.
ReplyDeleteWhether you observe Daylight Savings Time
May depend, by an large, upon your CLIME!
Near the equator
Nights aren't much greater,
While the arctic, it's a futile paradigm!
There once was a chap, name of Brutus,
Vied with Caesar for which was the cutest!
On the ides, he HAS AT,
Not to STAB in the back,
He STABBED Caesar in the forum, the brutest!
When to go to the WASHATERIA?
There ought to be standard criteria!
Does your room have a plume
Of hazardous fumes?
Or do you just enjoy A LOAF in their ATRIA?
Greetings!
ReplyDeleteThanks to Mark and Lemon!
Didn't know PAOLO, YOST. EULER was a gimme. Wrote more papers than anyone, I believe. (Unless has been surpassed.)
Happy Birthday, Tom! Have some chocolate cake for me!
Have a great day!
Morning, all (and Happy Birthday, Tom)!
ReplyDeleteBreezed through the top half of this puzzle, and almost crashed and burned in the bottom half. I just couldn't guess at THE MAGIC FLUE from the clue, and struggled with getting stuff like DEUCES, CLIME, TIDIEST, AMPLY, SUFFIX, XERS and YOST. It didn't help that I had UFO instead of POD and SEAT instead of LEGS for a goodly amount of time.
Worst of all, and most embarrassing, I had TENNER instead of DEUCES. I am very fond of spending two dollar bills (I get them by the strap from my bank) and know that Jefferson is on them, but I've never heard them called DEUCES before and just had a major brain fart. And yes, I know the clue asks for a plural and TENNER is singular. Again, major brain fart. To my credit, I did finally realize my mistake and removing TENNER from the grid really helped me get the ball rolling again down there.
Lemony's summary works for me. It works to tie my brain up into a knot! Geez lemony, I thought your job here is to UNcomplicate things. And I think something is wrong in that summary but my addled mind just doesn't care enough amy more to sort it out.
ReplyDeleteBG how many $2.00 bills are there in a strap? We had a young lawyer in the firm who did the same thing and for a while I had lots of them as well.
ReplyDeleteHBDTY and many more Tom.
Did you all watch the Harvard quarterback light up the field last night for the Jets? But for a kicker who missed a field goal and an extra point they would be off to a great start.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteWas shocked to learn that today is my birthday. I had managed to suppress the memory until CC reminded me. Thanks for the birthday wishes. My plan is to continue deluding myself and not get any older today.
I enjoyed Mark's puzzle -- even got the theme early on when BREW STRENGTH appeared. Found Florida to be the toughest area, probably because GENX needed to be XERS. That eventually worked out. But I still managed a birthday DNF. I didn't know the Spanish word for here, but remembered (I think) that in French it'd be ici. Figured the Spanish would be similar, so I went with ICA and ALLI turca. Bzzzzzzt!
Lemon, your girls are cute. Had to read your sentence about Harper three times -- was thinking if she's going to be a girl in 12 days, what is she now? D'oh!
I stayed in the Euler Hotel in Basel, Switzerland in July. I had "adze" in for FILE for a while.
ReplyDeleteA clever puzzle and enjoyed the theme. Didn't get it until the 3rd entry (Flue), but it finally assisted with Loo as confirmed by perps. This despite the fact that I've no knowledge of Lute Concerto....duh. Still, FIW since I didn't know Aca and went with Eca. Grr.
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful Birthday Tom!! But you can only fool yourself for so long.
BG how many $2.00 bills are there in a strap?
ReplyDelete100 bills in a strap, or $200 worth of $2 bills. I use them to give Joshua his allowance, pay tips and just spend them as the opportunity arises. Most people don't realize that the government still prints them and think they are getting something old, rare and valuable.
BTW, just read the Snopes link posted by Lemonade and was surprised to read that so many people consider $2 bills to be bad luck. Maybe it's a regional thing, but I've never had that reaction from anybody I've given them to. Maybe it's just because they haven't been in regular circulation for so long that any negative connotations have faded away with time.
ReplyDeleteIf anybody is curious as to how the $2 note has evolved over time, I have 80 year's worth (1896-1976) of them on display here. Although they are still printed today, the design hasn't changed since 1976.
Greetings to all!
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday Tom! Thanks for your support of the blog.
Only grokked the theme when I finished in the SE with MAGIC FLUE. Have never heard of Lute Concerto. Loved the clue "Less when added?" for SUFFIX. Thanks for a great puzzle, Mark, and thanks Lemonade for the informative expo.
Enjoy the day!
ANON @ 6:23- go away.
ReplyDeleteI have to admit that I had some difficulty this morning, finally completing it with a WAG at the cross of two FOREIGN words- ACA & ALLA. But Ihad the most trouble in the Mid-East because I confidently filled 35A as LAUNDRY SUIT as an initial fill. Never having heard of PAOLO and filling UFO first just had me stumped. I had already filled THE MAGIC FLUE & LOO CONCERTO and finally realized that I had to remove the T. '% alcohol by volume' I've heard of but BREW STRENGTH would be more fitting for coffee or tea. Never heard the term but it was my last theme fill. Also had to change ASP to EFT and UFO to POD.
I like the TIDIEST sum clue.
YOST,WEBER, & GARR were perped. GUAC-knew what it was but it sounds like a sound a duck would make, not an abbreviation.
Barry G- impressive spread of bills. Mine's at Vanguard.
Happy Birthday, Tom
ReplyDeleteD-N-F ... but a nice Ink Blot!
Cheers!
DNF for me too. I had a lot of missing knowledge, much of which seemed very specific, but since I refuse to google anything, I gave up when none of the theme answers made sense. I got BREW STRENGTH, but didn't see the gimmick and since I got nowhere on the others, the bottom half of the grid remained largely empty except some of the SW corner. As I've mentioned before, missing letters usually do me in.
ReplyDeleteWhat is a RED CAP?
I now see how to spell AWW.
59A "Smokeless chimney duct?" is a CSO to Canadian Eh
ReplyDeleteThanks all, for the write-up and comments on this puzzle. It was a fun one for me to construct, and I knew it would be tough for some. I had ACA clued as the Obamacare thing, but I know Rich tries to keep the initialisms to a minimum so he went with the Spanish word for "here". I was at one time semi-fluent in Spanish, so I really have to watch myself as I'm always thinking, "Oh, everyone knows that word", when actually most don't. AQUI is of course the more common word that more people would know, as I think ACA more or less means "to here" - "Ven aca!!!" while AQUI just means here, in this place. TMI, I know. This is a kinda special day for me, and if anyone cares to know why, check out my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mcclainmark
ReplyDeleteGood Morning:
ReplyDeleteThis was a toughie because it took a while to catch the theme. I had Pablo before Paolo and finally realized the fill was Laundry Shoe so Paolo gave me the aha moment for the theme. However, it was a FIW due to the Alla/Aca cross. No other bumps that perps couldn't smooth over.
Thanks, Mark, for a Friday challenge and thanks, Lemony, for the guided tour. Charlotte and Harper are two cuties.
Happy Birthday, Tom, hope it is full of fun and celebration! 🎂🎊🎈🎉. BTW, I'm not sure if you have any Irish bloodlines but you definitely have a bit of the devil in those baby blues! 😈
From yesterday, belated anniversary wishes to Boo and a CSO, to boot.
Have a great day.
Musings
ReplyDelete-What fun! My ignorance of Mozart Rondos and Spanish gave me one bad CELL at ALL_/_CA. I thought “ICI” is here in French and maybe ICA would work for Spanish…
-Lemon’s write-up and Mark’s commentary were instructive and interesting
-I did BLOW BY the top but labored on the lower TIER and didn’t get the gimmick until FLU(T)E. Doh!!
-REDCAPS are still around and seem to work near our favorite Cwd railway
-A SAFARI for me would only have cameras for shooting
-Lots of CLAPS and rain around here last night
-The biggest ATRIA I ever saw was in the Opryland Hotel in Nashvul ☺
-Ned’s had too many pieces hurt or traded to make it this year
-Weber’s Der Freischütz is a story about a man who lost his SOUL to the devil just like Joe Hardy did in Damn Yankees
-Astronaut Donald Pettit’s return to TERRA Firma in Kazakhstan
-If you think you are sheltering your kid from exposure to sex and violence…
-I was always taught there was a Leibniz–Newton calculus controversy about calculus. EULER never made the conversation
-Happy Birthday, Tom!
Mark,
ReplyDeleteDon't feel bad about the Spanish specificity. My forté is in French and German, so when those clues come up they are always a leg up for me when others might be cursing. So I can live with the Spanish when they are less common.
Warm thoughts for your family birthdays too. My mother lost her father to diabetes on her 14th birthday in 1920, one year before the discovery of insulin in 1921. Funny how dates can convene like that.
Happy birthday to Tom!
WHITNEY is not a "self-titled" album; it's eponymously titled. If it were self-titled, its name would be ALBUM. (Cf. the malaprop SELF-STORAGE: That's cryonics.)
ReplyDeleteIt's IM'D, not IMED. Cf. OD'D, not ODED.
REDCAPS are porters.
Mark:
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on having two puzzles in one day. I amazed how often that happens to constructors, knowing the different publications do not coordinate.
I recently celebrated the 110th anniversary of my father's birth.
As always, we who write about puzzles love feedback from those who create them
I really enjoyed that puzzle. It was challenging, clever and fun. Thanks Mark and Lemon. I don't really get the SUFFIX clue though. I'm sure my V-8 can will get dented once somebody explains it...
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday Tom!
Yesterday I ventured out for fish and chips for lunch. It was OK. The server had adopted the habit of always saying "No problem" instead of "You're welcome." Barbara and I both find that mildly annoying but this waitress had a serious infection, maybe five times in the minute I was conversing with her. Is that typical in your area too or is it just a local phenomenon? Do you find it mildly off-putting too?
I enjoyed this puzzle. I caught on to the theme with MAGIC FLUE, which helped with LAUNDRY SHOE.
ReplyDeleteNo totally unknowns, except ACA, although a few perps jogged my memory for some.
Happy anniversary to BOO and spouse and happy birthday to Tom.
You say to-may-to, I say to-mah-to.
Either IM’d or IMed is correct, as per dictionary.
"IM, Verb, used without object, IM'd or IMed, IM'ing or IMing, instant message."
Spell check prefers IM’d, but that doesn’t make IMed incorrect.
Again, per dictionary,
"Self-titled (of an album, CD, etc.) having a title that is the same as the performer's name." One definition of self-titled is "eponymously named." This is like the argument, "It is not big, it is large." We actually had a student of the Japanese language who said in a miffed tone, "The word you gave us for large last week, was not this one. Which one is correct?"
Crosswords require a flexible mind-set.
Thanks, Mark, for a nice challenge. SE was the last to fall, with ADZE in at first. Knew Ned Yost immediately, as he was a Milwaukee Brewer player long ago. Also, really liked the clue "Less when added". Took a while to register, though.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lemonade, for the great write-up.
Happy Birthday Tom !
ReplyDeleteThanks for the shout out and kind words CC.
Me too Irish Miss. PAbLO, _CHIP and _PS did me in. Did get ACA because I remembered ALLA from previous crosswords as in alla breve, and it seemed to fit since it had to do with music. Aptly before AMPLY gave some pause, and momentarily tried to fit in Journey before WHITNEY with the NEY in place.
Sharon's husband went solo (and glam in this video) and scored a hit 30 years ago with Shot in the dark
Wilbur from last night...Yes, you are correct. Mickey had 536, not 532 as I stated. David Ortiz hit another. He's now at 537. Here's the list, courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com:Career Leaders & Records for Home Runs
Barry, enjoyed your link - descriptions and detail. I hadn't seen obverse used to describe the face side of paper currency. Only coins. Then I read the Wikipedia Glossary of notaphily and a few other articles.
Lemonade, re: the two puzzles in one day . . . it happened to me last month also! And once last year.
ReplyDeleteMostly this was fun and easy until I hit the SE. For some reason my brain froze and I couldn't make headway though knew FLUE had to be there. As usual with some obscure (to me)sports names I checked on YOST and that broke open the south central. Didn't know PAOLO, either.
ReplyDeleteAlso I had no idea DEUCES was a name for the Jefferson two's so googled again and finished the SE corner. Vaguely recalled EULER from previous puzzles.
ACA, alla and aqui tend to be regional uses; I've been in parts of Mexico when one or another is used exclusively but can't recall how it is in Spain. The literature uses all three liberally.
Thank you, Mark, for stopping by and commenting. I liked this puzzle very much though some of it gave me fits but I enjoy the challenge and I learn.
And thank you, Lemonade; you always provide such important detail to help understand the nuances of a puzzle. I agree with Yellowrocks, flexibility is required to solve puzzles. Rigidity only causes frustration.
A very happy birthday, Tom!! Sorry, but you can't delude yourself forever. Enjoy the day.
Have yourselves a splendid day, everyone!
LESS when added to the end of a word becomes a suffix; e.g. shameless, hopeless, worthless. I love our language; anyone want to discuss shameless vs. shameful?
ReplyDeleteYellowrocks, thank you for the well reasoned explanation why crossword puzzles are meant to be fun. If you get an answer wrong because you are not familiar with a meaning, it is not necessary to bad mouth the clue. You try putting together a puzzle with no questions at the end.
KZ, my father was also born in 1906.
DNF. I tend to think of the puzzle as an omen regarding how my day is going to go, by which standard I should stay under the duvet today :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for the challenge, Mark McClain. And thank you, Lemonade, for metaphorically holding my hand through it once I gave up.
Enjoyed the puzzle.
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday, Tom!
By the way, this is a plié.
Bill G, doesn't bother me.
What the heck is a "VPS" for 25A Suits?
ReplyDeletePOD is a Sci-if craft?
R2D2 and 3CPO took a pod to escape the clutches of Darth Vader.
ReplyDeleteVice Presidents
Happy B'Day, Tom! You - and Mexican Independence! What a combo!!
ReplyDeleteToday's pzl was a challenge, requiring a few cheats by yrs truly, but not all that many. It was, as we like to say, a learning experience. I learned ACA as a variant of "acqui." I finally pinned down Von WEBER's years, and I learned to add EULER's name (courtesy of perps) to those of Newton and Leibniz.
I agree that SUFFIX was beautifully clued. And Thank you, Lemonade, for the several musical treats! I'm listening to the vivaldi now and busily typing a tempo.
Good afternoon everyone.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday D-Otto. Hope you have a great day.
Did not know ACA. FRENCH is ici. EULER helped start the SE. Partly grokked the theme with THE MAGIC FLUE, and LOO CONCERTO. Considered Yalu before going with AMUR. Perps were good. Light finally went on with ISUZU, but ultimately need help with DST. Guess P.R. stays on AST year-round. Knew what was wanted with the Jeffersons, but had to wait for DEUCES to crystallize.
Not bad; just some arbitrary fill typical of a Friday.
Anon PVX - Higher ups in a company are sometimes called suits. Jerry Stiller used the word in a Seinfeld episode. In this case, vice-presidents, VPS, would satisfy the clue.
Add to today's "learning" a reminder to pay strict attention to grammar when reading clues.
ReplyDeleteDid anyone else get stuck in mid-bottom by answering with the adjective AMPLE instead of the adverb AMPLY? I was only able to correct this when one of my (very few) cheats yielded the "Y" of YOST.
Well, after a good week this was a Friday toughie for me. Got only about 3/4 before I had to start cheating, and my problems were all on the East side. I did get a sense of the theme pretty early on, with BREW and LOO, and found it funny and cute. So still an enjoyable puzzle in spite of the challenge--many thanks, Mark, and thanks for checking in. And great expo, as always, Lemonade.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday, desper-otto!
Have a great weekend coming up, everybody!
BillG, like Jayce, I just say "No problem" to that.
ReplyDeleteJayce, your plié example looks like a bow-legged cowgirl.
Lemon, today is the 118th anniversary of my dad's birth. No, he's no longer around to celebrate it.
POD as in escape pod, AnonPVX.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most famous sc-fi scenes ever, from "2001: A Space Odyssey" - see relevant clip here:
Dave Bowman: Open the pod bay doors, HAL.
HAL: I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that.
Dave Bowman: What's the problem?
HAL: I think you know what the problem is just as well as I do.
Dave Bowman: What are you talking about, HAL?
HAL: This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardize it.
So you and your father shared the birth date- how cool. I am sure he is celebrating in some fashion, someplace. But wait- as a kid, did sharing the date detract from your party?
ReplyDeleteLemon, no, there wasn't really any conflict. Except maybe when it came to the birthday dinner. It was tradition at our house that the "birthday boy" got to pick the menu for dinner on that day. I got to pick what we'd have at noon -- normally I'd choose burgers, fries and cherry pie, all home-made. Dad got to pick what we'd have that night. We usually had our big meal at noon, so sometimes he'd let his birthday dinner slip a day and ask for something special on the 17th. "No problem," as Bill G wouldn't say.
ReplyDeleteOops. I'm sorry, shouldn't have included "alla" in that list, it means "there." Only ACA and AQUI mean here.
ReplyDeleteBill G:
Yes, I have noticed the prevalence of "no problem" especially since it was mentioned on the Charlie Rose Show some time ago. "You're welcome" is becoming rare.
Ol' Man Keith, I did put in AMPLE at first.
ReplyDeleteHappy Friday Cornerites! And Happy Birthday D-O, aka TOM!
ReplyDeleteWBS - The North BLEW BY; the 38a & South was a bugger (3 lookups - 38a, 26d, 70a) but, got 'er done. Thanks Mark - a little bit of a stretch on 42a, but nicely done. Lem, you provided what I was missing - a succinct "theme." I guess I'll have to wait 'till 'morrow for the LEGS (or NUDES!) expo :-)
Thanks for the inside-baseball Mike. Congrats on the twofer you've hit thrice - thought about playing the Lotto? :-)
WO - hand up for genX b/f XERS [and I is one]. I also put TAZ in 13d - a bit more ink wasted.
Hated: V-CHIP... "but think of the children." Bah! And, now, Xfinity monitors all your viewing.
ESP - REDCAP (?). [thanks == porter; got it]
Fav is hard to say today - you's gots YODA (tamer of the meme), WHAT'S (up) (Lem nailed link!), but then there's BREW STRENGTH (you mean ABV?). [I got another 6'er, er 5 now, of Victory IPA in my fridge!]
SUFFIX would be my fav c/a if it didn't take the V8 can so long to hit. I stared at that DANG space much too long; it raised my ire too much to, like, "like."
SAY BOO ? Never heard it in Lem's expo context. Perps were solid so let it stand.
{A, C+, B+}
Bill G. Blame us XERS for "No problem" or "No worries" instead of "You're Welcome." I use the formers when holding a door or some-such and someone says thanks. I'm sure Ms. Manners would call me out as rude but, com'on dude, it wasn't that much effort to help a fellow human. [Or, in her case, that's what she's paid for].
YR - +1! Yes, it does require mental flexibility - that's why it's called a puzzle!
Still no takers on last night's spider? I poked a hole in the lid but he doesn't seem like his happy little spider self... Poisonous or no? Surely the Corner has an arachnoexpert.
Cheers, -T
We also have the birthday honoree select the dinner and the dessert. When the kids were young they wanted to go out for pizza. Our family almost always selects pie, much of the time my apple pie. My husband selected home bread sometimes instead of a dessert in the days when there were no bread machines. Much yummier.
ReplyDeleteOn my birthday there is traditionally roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. I love it, so no complaints. I like a Satin Chocolate pie, sinfully rich.
Today is my DIL's birthday. We are having trouble finding a day to get together, but she appreciates my apple pie the most of anyone.
YellowRockhead, you have shown again, by your comments on "self-titled," IM'D and OD'D, that you care not about words or the integrity of the language, but only about sources. When you use any dictionary that supports your malaprop or write your own dictionary, anything goes.
ReplyDeleteHi Y'all! Definitely a learning experience, thank you, Mark! Kids in school cheat on tests. Adults in the real world do research to find the answers they need. Then there are red-letter runs which I needed to fill the SW. I was clue-less on SUFFIX even after I filled it. Finally got it lying in bed ruminating. Don't feel bad, BillG.
ReplyDeleteLemony, thanks for all you do. The Mozart hit the spot today.
I sorta got the theme early but couldn't figure out what a LOO(T) CONCERTO was. Maybe the clinking sound from jewels and other ill-gotten gains in a heist? DUH! Then there is LOO CONCERTO which could be a tinkling sound with tooting in the background. TMI! Oh, LUTE, silly me.
My daughter had a major life-change occur two months ago and didn't say BOO about it to me. I paid them a visit and stumbled over it with my foot in my mouth. Drives me nuts when they don't tell me important stuff.
I wondered if there were still RED CAPs. They've traded their distinctive round pill-box caps for baseball caps though. Look too much like the general population out here to be noticeable.
Swan's "neck" before PLIE.
Happy birthday, Tom! Hope someone makes the day special for you! You are special to us.
AnonT: I looked for your spider link but it was all white except for your avatar. Try googling Brown Recluse Spider. Sounds like a possibility. They are toxic biters. I studied spiders long ago.
Mark, you beat me up but I loved the fight. Lots of fun fill . I even got some of the hard ones.
ReplyDeleteOMK, It was mostly a "learning moment" for me , thanks to Lemon's informative write up . How do you find all these links? As for the PLIÉ, if performed correctly it does make one look like a bow legged cowgirl.
D Otto, have a happy!
T you do not have to worry about the flesh killing recluse, they are brown and small. Yours is damaged (7 legs) and furry. I will ask John Lampkin my bug guy.
ReplyDelete4:37 anon, just why is your take on the language and integrity of words more apropos than the compilation of the usage of words from many sources by the dictionary compilers? How is your personal opinion above the research of experts who amass a great volume of info regarding usage? What is the basis for your expertise? Crossword puzzles do not aspire to be the gold standard of usage. They just reflect WHAT IS. If it is used, it is legit. We are not talking about the Chicago Style Manual.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the anniversary wishes everyone ~!~!
ReplyDeleteBon Fete D-Otto !!!!
Mark this one ate my lunch ~!~!
UFO for POD, AMPLE for AMPLY, ADZE for FILE, TENNER for DUECES, BRITNEY for WHITNEY, which gave me RUNAT for HASAT. EEL for EFT, EERIE for WEIRD. TALKTO for Say ME LOL. BOO.
Needless to say I had a lot of RED CAPitol letters.
Vendredi Enfin from Cajun Country ~!~! [ Friday at last ]
Thanks for the feedback on SUFFIX. Very clever. Just one little notch too clever for me. Rats!
ReplyDelete"No problem" and "You're welcome" can certainly be interchanged, but to my ear, "No problem" sounds like the action was dismissively insignificant whereas "You're welcome" feels as if somebody did something nice for you but they didn't mind and were happy to oblige.
Bill G, no problem! (Heh heh, pulling your leg.)
ReplyDeleteLove the Corner - learnt 3 things already...
ReplyDelete1. If there were anons in Shakespear's day we wouldn't have 1/2 the words we use ANON 'cuz they don't conform...
2. Perhaps only "blues" can see the pix I posted on Google's service
3. You're Welcome is "aimed" at an individual... I'll 'splain...
I'm a bit autistic-ish - it's taken DW 20+ years to make me "nice," 'cuz I don't pickup on social-clue things... So, if I say No Worries it's like saying "I'd do that for anyone" but, saying You're Welcome, is "I do it 'cuz you is you." Interesting. Thanks Bill G.
4. I forgot you Boo! Hope y'all had a great time!
5. I can't count.
CED - Tom doesn't want me to find the cake. What are you strafing in Germany now?
Cheers, -T
DO - In case CED's sortie takes all night - Happy Birthday.
ReplyDeleteCheers, -T
AnonT & Lemonade: Brown recluse spiders are large. I googled them and they show them about twice the size of a penny if you count the legs. My daughter had a brown recluse spider infestation that she spent much money trying to get rid of one year in a rental house. The renters who had complained left and the spiders apparently went with them. Never saw them again and she sold the house.
ReplyDeleteThey have big bugs along the Texas Gulf Coast that I never saw anywhere else.
The Magic Flue?
ReplyDeleteLoo Concerto?
Laundry Shoe PSA
Brew Strength?
& HBD Desperotto!
Been pretty busy, here is some gun camera footage...
Note, these are not WWII pics, these are clips from the game with
sepia and scratches added for effect.
Consensus is wolf spider but JL' s expertise is butterfly.
ReplyDeleteAh well, I tried
The biggest recluse is about the same size as the smallest wolf
One maybe a penny the other a silver dollar or bigger
Thanks Lem. PK - This guy, legs and all, are slightly larger than a Silver Dollar [how much in a strap, er sleeve, Barry G :-)].
ReplyDeleteThe perp is now free to hunt solo In the flower garden.
Thanks Corner. -T
Much ado about nothing.
ReplyDelete@11:58 - All ados are about nothing w/ enough time & retrospect... BTW, it was your flower bed I that free'd Harry :-)
ReplyDeleteCED - Cool vid. I'm glad you clarified re: vintage - it was pretty realistic on the iThing. One of your gunners going for the ground bomber is a bad shot - I assume that's not you :-). Keep Britain free - V for Victory :-)
DO - it's after 9/16 unless you're in Hawaii (and I know you're just up the road a pace - hence the cake theme):
age++; [post incremented for your sanity; we don't 0-index years nor hours (see: yester-yesterday)]
Cheers, -T
It wasn't a horrible Fri until the SE. I liked XERS, just not that X which wouldn't fit with ADZE.
ReplyDeleteTIDIEST stared me in the face but I couldn't'get' it. Then it all fell together and now I see I had ICA So FIW.
Here's a clue for you old time bballers:
The (incredible) walking man. Eddie YOST of the old Washington Senators. A Curt Gowdy fav. Just assumed he was Ned's father.
Just had a pause for Mickey Mantle memories. Was he the Ali of the 50s,60s?
Boo. How did you miss BOO?😁
HBDs, kudos etc for all, including the Charlie Brown patience award for YR